Where did this idea come from?

In Aotearoa (New Zealand), a marae is seen as a turangawaewae— a word literally meaning "standing place" (tūranga) for "feet" (waewae), and commonly translated into English as "a place to stand."

However described, a New Zealand marae is a place for tangata whenua (hosts) and manuhiri (visitors) to honor and take part in Maori ways of being with others.

The reinterpretations of traditional Maori customs and procedures described in this web site, and detailed at greater length in the accompanying handbook, are intended only for use outside Aotearoa.

This web site and handbook are offered free of charge as tools for holding marae encounters elsewhere in the world on the strong conviction that the rest of the world needs a better way for people to sit down with one another than most people currently possess — and instead of reinventing the wheel, it is the better part of wisdom to learn from what the Maori of New Zealand have so brilliantly perfected.